Vast quantities of information are being generated during the day to day operations of modern business and government facilities. Efficient operation of such facilities requires that this information be stored safely and efficiently yet be readily available for use. One approach to the problem is to record the information on microforms of one kind or another, so as to minimize the storage space required, and to store the microforms in a central file where they may be kept safe from accidental damage and unauthorized removal. When access to any of the information is required, the pertinent microform is removed from its place in the file and transported, preferably automatically, to a viewing station. There it may be viewed directly or by a television camera so as to transmit an image to a remote location.
Information retrieval systems based on the above approach, although generally satisfactory, have been subject to a number of disadvantages. For example, whenever a microform is abstracted from it place, the integrity of the file is jeopardized. There is always the danger that the microform will not be returned, or, what may be worse, that it will be returned to the wrong place. In either case the stored information may, for all practical purposes, be lost. As another example, there is a practical limit as to how far a microform can be transported from its storage location to the viewing station. As the number of documents to be stored increases, it is necessary to provide additional viewing stations and transporting mechanisms. As yet another example, only one person can use the file at any one time. If that person needs to study a document carefully, the entire file is tied up while he is examining a single item.
It is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved information storage and retrieval method and apparatus.
Another object is to provide an information storage and retrieval system in which information stored at a central location can be retrieved both locally and at a number of remote locations.
Another object is to provide an information storage and retrieval method and system in which the stored information may be retrieved without jeopardizing the integrity of the file.
Another object is to provide an information storage and retrieval system in which a single retrieval mechanism serves as very large number of stored records.
Another object is to provide an information storage and retrieval system in which a viewer may study the contents of a record at length yet release the file for the use of others while he is doing so.